It all began as idea to take some of our folk who won't get a holiday for a day to the seaside.

Then it widened to an invitation for whoever wanted to come along to join us.

And in the end fourteen of us landed up in Troon, having travelled by train, had a picnic, made sandcastles, paddled in the sea, some went to a teashop, others to a play park, and most to the chippy for tea.

We were a very international group - eight non Brits, of three different ethnicities, and six Brits.

We were a wide range of ages - three children, and adults in the range 20s to early 70s

We were family or community or church...

And it was a grand day out.

Apologies to anyone who has been checking by in the hope I've written something - it's been the kind of week where a lot has been happening much of which it isn't appropriate to be sharing.

I had a lovely weekend away in Edinburgh, and would certainly recommend the student accommodation we rented to anyone looking for self-catering accommodation for a group of adults.  Always good to catch up with folk I haven't seen for ages. Tea and cake (as per photo) was de rigeur both in Edinburgh and on a day trip back to Glasgow!

Sasha has been back to the vet for blood tests.  Things seem finally to be moving in the 'right' direction, so hopefully her drugs can be reduced in the near future.

I am looking forward to tomorrow and a day trip to the seaside with 'our' asylum seeker families, and showing them the great British traditions of ice-cream, fish 'n' chips, paddling, sandcastles... and train rides!

For any Weegie readers, the European Championships are messing up the roads and public transport over the next week, but we will still be meeting for worship at the usual place at the usual time! If you want to check things out go to this link (click here)

I've spent a little bit of time tidying up this blog, removing links that I suspect no-one uses or that are 'dead', and rewording the odd bit of stuff that appears in the side bars.

If, by some remote chance, I've deleted a link you have been using, my apologies... and hopefully you can find whatever it is somewhere else.

No posting for a few days - I have a weekend away in Edinburgh with some friends.  Normal nonsense will be resumed shortly!

At some point on Sunday morning I lost my wrist watch... I was sure I had put it on, but when I got to church, it was missing from my wrist.  Much searching has failed to find it, so I have purchased a replacement - an inexpensive watch: I'm only interested in it telling the time not whether it looks especially attractive (it doesn't).

Because I'm left-handed, I've always worn my watch on my right wrist - when I was given my first watch at the age of eight (my parents having decided I was sufficiently competent at telling the time, and sufficiently trustworthy neither to overwind or lose it) my Mum fastened it to my right wrist and that was that.

It's always been a positive,, if atypical, choice - during exams I could check my watch and carry on writing, something I thought might be tricky if pen and watch were on the same side.

However, I suspect that the reason I lost - and didn't notice I had lost - my watch was because, for the past several years, I've worn it very 'loose' to avoid adding to the lymphoedema in my right arm.  When I tried on the new watch yesterday, and did it up properly (not tight, just not really loose), I could feel the effect of the tightness - not good!

So I've changed hands... my left wrist is now adjurting itself to the strange sensation of having a watch strapped to it.  My mind is trying to remember to 'look left' rather to to 'look right'.  No doubt in a few days it'll all feel quite normal, but for now I'm choosing to name the strangeness.

Perhaps that's some sort of metaphor for something - it certainly is for me as I reflect on the recent changes in my own life.  Maybe by naming the strangeness rather than hiding (or denying?) it, it will resolve more healthily than otherwise.

And if anyone happens to find a cheap 'white metal' bracelet watch lying around, let me know!